Film Name: H. P. Lovecraft’s the Old Ones
Directors: Chad Ferrin
Writers: Chad Ferrin, H.P. Lovecraft (Based on stories by)
Starring: Kelli Maroney, Cyril O’Reilly, Robert Miano
In 1930, sea captain Russel Marsh saw the light, and for 93 years his body was not his own. Inhabited
by a Great Old One, he committed unspeakable acts in the name of the Esoteric Order of Dagon. Now
free, he is in search of a way to go back in time to reverse the horrors wrought upon the world. But
the cult has other plans and will stop at nothing to destroy him.
In a new exclusive interview on Blazing Minds, I got a chance to ask writer-director Chad Ferrin a few questions about his film H. P. Lovecraft’s The Old Ones which has been selected for Horror-on-Sea on Saturday 13th January at 15:00pm
Q. Your film H. P. Lovecraft’s The Old Ones has been selected to play at the Horror-on-Sea Film
Festival. Can you tell us what we can expect from the film?
A. It’s a stand alone sequel to H. P. Lovecraft’s The Deep Ones with double the monsters, double the
lore and double the gore.
Q. What made you decide to adapt H. P. Lovecraft’s stories for the film and how close did you
keep to the original stories?
A. It started with The Deep Ones mainly because the location was on the ocean, and I immediately
thought of Lovecraft and his superb story The Shadow over Innsmouth and used it as the backbone
of that script. As a kid reading Lovecraft left me scratching my head more than cowering under the
bed. But once I started re-reading his stuff for Deep Ones, I fell in love with it and the excitement of
putting my own spin on his work is beyond words.
Q. What were some of your influences for the look and style of the film?
A. It’s a cosmic horror road trip, so Phantasm II (1988) would be the film that influenced it the most.
Q. Did you make any changes from the original script during filming?
A. I go into these with an open mind knowing that dialog and blocking are bound to change from
what I originally envisioned because of a location being the exact opposite from mind or an actor’s
interpretation. For example, the original script opened with the father and son out on a boat and
when we couldn’t secure a boat, I changed it last minute to them camping in the woods. Basically on
these budgets you take what life gives you and work your film around it.
Q. What were some of your favourite moments during filming?
A. I had my birthday on set and the cast/crew surprised me with a cake, gifts and a card. Truly one of
the best days of my life.
Q. Did you experience any issues during filming?
A. It rained pretty heavy for a couple days shooting in the woods, that was a bit uncomfortable.
Other than that it was a smooth 10 day shoot.
Q. What makes H. P. Lovecraft’s The Old Ones stand out as something different in the horror
genre?
A. I think the odd couple pairing of Robert Miano and Ben Philip, the old and young having to work
together to save the world from cosmic horrors is a unique twist.
Q. What do you hope people take away after watching the film?
A. I hope they enjoy it as much as I did making it. And if it turns a few people on to read Lovecraft
even better.
Q. Do you have any other projects which you are currently working on?
A. Yes, we’re in post production on Unspeakable: Beyond the Wall of Sleep with Eddie Furlong,
Susan Priver, Robert Miano, Ginger Lynn, Steve Railsback and Bai Ling. This time, I combined
characters from my first film Unspeakable and Lovecraft’s Beyond the Wall of Sleep. Shoot was a
blast.
Q. If someone was looking to get into filmmaking film what advice would you give them?
A. Don’t give up. Ever.
‘H. P. Lovecraft’s The Old Ones’ has been selected to play at the Horror-on-Sea Film Festival on Saturday 13th January at 15:00pm
You can find out more about the Festival and purchase tickets here
Published in various websites, Philip is a reviewer who is best known for his interviews and media coverage of independent projects including; films, books, theatre and live events. Always on the lookout for something different to cover!
